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How significant is Mullah Baradar's arrest?
BBC News ^ | February 16, 2010 | M Ilyas Khan

Posted on 02/16/2010 9:29:29 AM PST by La Lydia

The capture of top Taliban militant commander Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar in the Pakistani city of Karachi is the most important catch for the American CIA and the Pakistani intelligence service since March 200...According to analysts, Mullah Baradar not only has first-hand knowledge of the nature and the extent of the Taliban network in Afghanistan and Pakistan, he also knows details of their linkages with the Pakistani intelligence corps...

Another aspect of Mullah Baradar's capture revolves around proposed talks which Western commanders and the Afghan government hope to initiate with Taliban leaders who are willing to work within the framework of the Afghan constitution.

Some quarters here indicate that the arrest may have been "orchestrated" by elements within the Pakistani establishment to facilitate back-channel talks with "willing" Taliban commanders. This line of thinking presupposes a scenario in which the Pakistanis "brought in" Mullah Baradar under a pre-arranged pact with the CIA to pave the way for negotiations.

If true, this may indicate a serious move towards a negotiated settlement of the Afghan imbroglio. It may also mean a fundamental shift in Pakistani strategy - from promoting its own proxies in Afghanistan to seeking an arrangement that can have wider acceptance. But if the arrest was purely the result of CIA intelligence-gathering, then it apparently leaves little room for the Pakistanis to do anything other than to tag along and satisfy the demand of the Americans for a joint operation...

(Excerpt) Read more at news.bbc.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: hiddenagenda; islam; terror; violence
Again, the idea of coming to some kind of compromise with the Taliban raises its sinister head.
1 posted on 02/16/2010 9:29:29 AM PST by La Lydia
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To: La Lydia

Gee, I hope the Pakistanis don’t forget to read him his Miranda rights.


2 posted on 02/16/2010 9:31:09 AM PST by Grim (I'm voting for Sarah)
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To: La Lydia

Did they read him his Miranda rights and provide him an ACLU high-dollar lawyer yet?


3 posted on 02/16/2010 9:31:17 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet (I will raise $2 million for Sarah Palin: What will you do?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet; Grim

I am sure the Pakistanis are providing him with “something,” but I doubt it is his ACLU lawyer. Very smart of the CIA to let the Pakis take the lead in this and
“detain” him. They don’t have Eric Holder looking over their shoulders. And I am confident the Pakistani jail accommodations and rules are very different from Gitmo. Ahem.


4 posted on 02/16/2010 9:37:06 AM PST by La Lydia
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To: La Lydia
.
arrest may have been "orchestrated" by elements within the Pakistani establishment to facilitate back-channel talks with "willing" Taliban commanders.

Let's lure them in and execute them.

They'll understand -- it's their way of life.
.

5 posted on 02/16/2010 9:39:55 AM PST by Touch Not the Cat
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To: La Lydia
Several FR strings on this story. BTW, his real name is Abdul Ghani Akhund. His nickname Mullah (teacher) Baradar (brother) was given to him by Mullah Omar.

Here is a repost:

Baradar/Interpol Bio: http://www.interpol.int/public/data/noticesun/notices/data/2006/10/2006_25910.asp

There are 4 main operational groups within the so-called "Taliban": 1)Mehsud-driven Pak-Pahktuns, 2)The AfPak Haqqani's, 3)Hekmaytyr's Afghans, 4)Baradar's Afghan Pahktuns. Baradar is old-school Afghan muj and grew up with Omar, the nominal figure-head of the "Taliban".

Baradar (Akhund) is a Popalzai tribesman, a branch of the Durrani Pahktuns along with Hamid Karzai.

Baradar is the most capable of the Taliban leaders and well connected to Persian Gulf Arabs and their money. He is personal friends with Mullah Qayoum Karzai, brother of Hamid Karzai. They both met with Saudi's in Dubai in 2008 as a part of the ongoing Afghan reconciliation.

Baradar's main focus is the Afghan theater. He would know the location of Omar's network but would not be much help with Bin Laden/Zawahiri/al Qaeda whom are sheltered by the Haqqani's.

Pak's ISI had grown increasingly fearful that they were losing control of the Afghan Pahktuns led by Baradar. Baradar also made the critical mistake of inciting violence against the Pak Shiites in Karachi causing widescale property and economic damage to their stock market. The Pak Army and ISI are also a business and he cost their insiders a lot of money from their stock portfolios. That brought the "Feudals" after Baradar and he lost his guest privileges.

His capture will have little effect in Pakistan, much more in Afghanistan. Look for his release in the future as a part of the Afghan reconciliation.

6 posted on 02/16/2010 9:48:35 AM PST by gandalftb (OK State: Go Cowboys)
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To: La Lydia

As we speak, the new number two is celebrating. There is an endless supply of number twos. I’m not suggesting we don’t catch them, read them their Miranda rights, and send them to New York. It is all part of the process.


7 posted on 02/16/2010 9:56:23 AM PST by pallis
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Comment #8 Removed by Moderator

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